How HRM Policies and Practices Promote Responsible Business Practices

This essay delves into the critical role of Human Resource Management (HRM) policies and practices in promoting responsible business operations. It examines how key HRM areas, including recruitment and selection, training and development, and reward systems, directly influence ethical conduct and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) within organizations. The essay highlights how effective training programs cultivate ethical behavior among employees, enabling them to navigate complex ethical dilemmas and contribute to a positive organizational culture. Furthermore, it explores how ethical recruitment and selection processes ensure that organizations hire individuals aligned with their values, reinforcing ethical codes of conduct. The analysis also covers the impact of reward systems on ethical practices and CSR initiatives, demonstrating how fair and equitable compensation can motivate employees to engage in responsible behaviors and contribute to community development. By integrating these HRM practices, organizations can foster a sustainable and ethical business environment that benefits all stakeholders.

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How do HRM policies and practices promote responsible business practices?
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Introduction
Human Resource policies and practices are guidelines used by managers and supervisors
as a reference for managing staffs. According to Zibarras and Coan (2015 p.2121), organizations
with effective policies and practices enjoy the benefit of promoting responsible business
practices that contributes to a conducive working environment and enhancement of the profile.
Human resource and practices are set by management or owners of companies and state what
employees are supposed to do or not. Therefore, the essay seeks to examine how HRM policies
and practices promote a responsible business practice.
How HRM policies and practices promote responsible business practices
Recruitment and selection, rewards as well as training and development activities are
HRM policies and practices that promote responsible business practice such as ethics and
Corporate Social Responsibly (CSR). According to Kraus and Brtitzelmaier (2012 p.282),
Corporate Social Responsibility is a concept of management that involves an organization
integrating its social and environmental concerns in the operations and interactions with the key
stakeholders. Furthermore, Corporate Social Responsibility establishes responsible practices and
behaviour within an organizational competency, core values, objectives as well as stakeholder’s
interest. In a business context, Ethics also known as a statement of values or code of conduct is
defines as principles and code of values which governs a business as well as its employees in the
context of what is right and wrong (Tsalikis and Fritzsche, 2013 p.337).
Training and development of employees is an HRM practice that promotes ethics in an
organization. A research conducted by Lengnick-Hall, Beck and Lengnick-Hall, (2011 p.243)
showed that employees who had effective training developed moral values which enables an
organization to develop a positive business culture as compared to organizations with low

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training and development practices. Human Resource department needs to train their employees
on how to respond to in a diverse situation that involves ethic matters. Human Resource
Management conducts training of employees through various training programs and initiatives to
ensure employees can match various ethical situations or dilemmas they are exposed to in their
daily activities with suitable responses. For example, in 2019, Boeing Company was involved in
unethical practices with the company’s management failing to provide pilots with effective
training of Boeing max 737 which led to the two Boeing Airplanes crashed in Indonesian and
Ethiopia that claimed lives of all 346 passages on board (Grant, 2019 p.1-5). Every ethical
dilemma has an inappropriate and appropriate answer and therefore the training and development
of staff allow HRM to explain the importance of some policies and to demonstrate on how
employees are supposed to respond in various ethical circumstance they are likely to encounter
in their line of duty. Furthermore, when employees are well trained and developed, they are more
likely to treat their colleagues with respect and dignity regardless of gender, race or ethnicity
(Sung and Choi, 2014 p.393). Besides, through the training, employees are also able to practice
organizational code of practices and maintain its ethical culture.
Training of employees on business ethics also has a positive impact on Corporate Social
Responsibility practices. With the social pressure emerging from training and development
practices, organizations have been forced to instil corporate social responsibility Baumann-
(Pauly, Wickert, Spence and Scherer, 2013 p.693). Organizations which have a higher
investment of time in training and development are likely to implement CSR practices which
fulfil expectations of employees. For example, Boeing Company has created an educational
program as a part of Corporate Social Responsibility which helps them to develop their
professionalism (Clarkson, Ponn, Richardson, Rudzicz, Tsang and Wang (2020 p.3). Therefore,

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organizations need to identify training and development needs before it officially communicates
to employees about their attitude towards Corporate Social responsibility.
Recruitment and selection is an HRM practice that promotes Ethics and in an
organization. The hiring of ethical employees enables an organization to reinforce a culture that
adheres to the code of conducts. For example, an organization should hire an employee who is
highly inclined to practice and behave ethically than HRM relying on the code of ethics of a
company to motivate an unethical employee to consider making right decisions. Therefore,
during the recruitment and selection process, HR must conduct a psychological test to assess
their candidates’ degree of ethics and further recruit employees who are compliant with various
moral values practised by an organization. Situation- Specific questionnaires as well as personal
tests are effective recruiting and selection methods to determine ethical employees who can bring
respect, integrity and professionalism which are key ethic elements in an organization.
Recruitment and selection as an HRM practice and policy also promote Corporate Social
Responsibility in an organization. Appointing qualified staff and giving priority to local
candidates and candidates with family difficulties or people who have been fired and desperately
in need of job opportunities can lead to sustainability of societies and local economies. Besides,
consideration of diversity and inclusion with an organizational positioning itself as “equal
employer” it promotes Corporate Social Responsibility as gives back marginalized communities
and employees from diverse race, gender and ethnicity an opportunity to improve their standards
of livings.
A reward is also an HRM practice that promotes ethical practices in an organization. In a
business context, Rewards include both financial and non-financial compensation that employees
receive from the services they offer to their organization (Klindžić and Galetić, 2020 p.71). A

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research conducted by Mayer, Kuenzi and Greenbaum (2010 p.7) shows that when employees
are well rewarded for their efforts they are likely to exercise ethical practices in their roles and
responsibilities. Furthermore, unethical practices such as workforce conflict at the workplace are
well explained by poor rewards and pay-related issues. Therefore, a reward is holistically
developed to solve the equity problem in an organization which in short and long-run can
contribute to job dissatisfaction. A research conducted by Calvin (2017 p.1) shows that
employees need equitable rewards like “fair pay” and “pay deal” for their services for them to be
more engaged and committed in services their offer to customers and their organization.
A reward is also an HRM practice that promotes Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
in an organization. When employees are highly rewarded, they are more motivated to participate
in community development activities and contribute significantly. Besides, organizations that
offer Corporate Social Responsibility programs and initiatives such as Employee Assistance
Programs to cater for employees and their families’ wellbeing as a part of reward and
compensation significantly experience increased support from the community.
Conclusion
Human resource policies and practices are used to guide employees in their workplace.
Training and development, reward as well as recruitment and selection are human practices that
promote ethics and Corporate Social responsibility. CSR integrates environmental and social
concerns in the operations. Ethics is a code of value that governs a business. Employees with
effective training develop moral behaviour that fosters an ethical culture and can respond well in
various ethical situations. Recruitment promotes Corporates Social Responsibility in an
organization due to the recruitment of local employees and marginalized ones in the community.

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Rewards of an employee such as well-being programs and initiatives is a CSR practice that
enabled employees to be more engaged.

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References
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